Kuba Raffia Woven Currency

Raffia, among the Kuba, was more than cloth. It was a measure of what a family had.

Raffia cloth held a well-documented place in Kuba society, used as currency and offered in bridewealth and at funerals. This piece, made in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 20th century, is a long flat strip of finely woven raffia, thirty-seven and a half inches from end to end. Both ends are twisted into tight rope-like spirals that curve gently downward. The pale straw color has taken on a soft, mottled tone with age.

On a low stand, it has the line of a drawn bow. Light, and not at all strung.